Farmers Market

The Loma Linda Chamber of Commerce held a soft opening on June 4 in preparation for a new farmer’s market that will take place every Tuesday evening. The opening brought vendors and curious visitors, local and otherwise, all excited to see how the weekly event will go. Phil Carlisle, the Chief Executive Officer of the Chamber of Commerce, has long wanted to start a farmer’s market more accessible than the current Sunday market, which has been difficult for those busy with Sunday church services to attend. It wasn’t until the Healthy Cities Committee approached him with the proposal of a healthy downtown market night that things began to happen. “We want to try to keep it as healthy as possible, within reason,” Phil said of the market’s health-wise demeanor. One vendor, Jodi Chen of Empire Rose Soap Co., who is local, is “hoping it will work out,” she said. While she currently travels to other market nights to sell, such as Riverside’s, she says it would be nice to have one close by and in the area. Cee Duckett, a vendor who specializes in healthy treats, says she hopes to provide the University students with healthy but delicious substitutes for typical unhealthy snacks. “I have kids in college, so I know how they eat,” she explained. With its close proximity to Loma Linda University, the market is almost guaranteed to have foot traffic from Loma Linda students. Tiffany Guy and Annie Coriolan, two students who visited the market together, had visited Redland’s own market night, but were happy to see something happening so close to campus, calling it “accessible.” They were unaware of the soft opening, and had simply come across the market by chance. When asked if they were aware of the market’s healthy products, they had guessed it so. But the translation of Loma Linda’s notably health-conscious ways into its market night is a good decision to them. The market night’s official grand opening took place June 11, and is now a weekly and, hopefully, continuously growing event. Carlisle is especially hopeful for the event. “We’re excited about this. It’s in the evening and we’ll hopefully pull people from the area and have a real nice market soon.” With its proximity to the university campus and its healthy products, the market night looks as if it may soon grow to be another staple in the spectrum of a community that is Loma Linda.